Once Upon a Drabble
by wrr0rzxpurrt
Summary: Come one, come all! Drabbles of death, life, love, laughs - all short, all meticulously written, and all starring AF and Co. R, R, & R.
1. Stop

_**Diss: a shortened version of "disrespect" (US)**_

_**Claymore: A two-edged broadsword used by Scottish Highlanders.**_

_**Disclaimer: A disrespectful two-edged broadsword popular among Scottish Highlanders and Americans?**_

_**Kidding. Disclaimer: I do NOT own Artemis Fowl in any shape, way, or form. Etc. **_

_**Title: Once Upon a Drabble**_

_**Beta: None**_

_**Summary: Come one, come all! Drabbles of death, life, love, laughs – all short, all meticulously written, and all starring AF & Co. R, R, & R. **_

**~Stop~**

She didn't allow herself to think too much. In fact, she tried not to think at all, letting her focus meander on the screen and watch the jagged line that raced up and down, never pausing. Sometimes the lines were ragged, others smoother. She full well knew that she was wasting her newly-refreshed magic supply by shielding for such a long period of time, but she couldn't be seen in a Mud Man dwelling with Mud Men all rushing about in their crisp white outfits. So she watched, just watched, until the line was barely moving, barely there. And when it finally stopped, she left, not trusting herself to keep silent when placed before the scenario of him gone.

Gone, dead, away to the supposedly better place. For the line had stopped and ceased movement, and lay dreadfully straight.


	2. Pull

**~Pull~**

Artemis Fowl II was always, always expected to be stoic. To keep his face an indifferent mask. Now that his father discouraged it, he tried to open up more and found that, once he attempted, the pull was actually quite strong. The pull to be happy, human, loving, smiling all the time without abandon like it would solve the world's troubles if he did. He allowed himself to forget and live like he could only ever dream of, and he liked it. Once he was pulled in, he couldn't recall why he had maintained such an expressionless face all the time before.

For this change, he could only thank the fairies for their help and healing — for healing both his father, and, indirectly but more importantly, him.


	3. Stubborn

~Stubborn~

"You're leaving this house and you're leaving now."

"But it's so cold!" Artemis whined, trying his best not to sound like a petulant child. Who could blame him? It was just over ten degrees Fahrenheit outside the warmth of his comfortable Manor, and the Christmas cheer everyone had these days annoyed him to no end. How could they stand out there in the freezing wind, singing about the long-dead fairy, San D'Klass?

"Come on, Arty," Holly said, quickly choosing a different tactic. "You'll be fine. Some people think the cold's refreshing."

"Refreshing, my foot." Still, Artemis couldn't prevent Butler from attacking him from behind and dressing the irritable boy.

Twenty minutes later, Artemis was still outside and he was still shivering. It needs to be said that he was no longer unhappy, but, the Fowl he was, he'd never admit it.


	4. Precious

~Precious~

"Oh, Mud Boy, when will you learn?" The voice, sweet but cutting, full of dark promise yet still holding on to its feminine quality, echoed around the empty room. "I'll always get my revenge."

"And you'll always fail, too," Artemis rasped, though he didn't move from his position — lying helpless on the floor with his left side aching.

"I've succeeded this time, though, haven't I?"

He didn't waste his last few breaths on her. They were too precious for that.


	5. Gravity

~Gravity~

It was a restriction, a limit to movement, a dragging force that coerced you back onto the ground. It was oppressing. It was suffocating. No matter how high any human managed to jump or leap, gravity always drew them back to Mother Earth.

That was the way Artemis felt about the elf (he was currently in the "denial" stage, and therefore couldn't bring himself to properly think her name). Something about her kept drawing him back, as though an invisible string tethered him to her side. However, unlike gravity, this feeling wasn't unpleasant or irksome — he rather liked it.

He rather liked _her_, and the way he was drawn to her like a magnet, or like he was gravitated to her, for that matter.


	6. Bouquet

~Bouquet~

Perfectly arranged, perfectly aligned. Delicate petals spanned out gracefully from each flower, the elegant curve of each leaf was soft to the touch. The thorns had been carefully plucked off the stems of the roses so that they were slender and smoothed, the pleasant smell of grass and sweetness curled around it as if to protect the flowers from harm's reach.

There was no doubt as to where this bouquet had come from — you could never find such freshness underground. It was a breath of a clear spring day after a cleansing rain. Despite everything, Holly let out a resentful, regretful sigh.

This did not go unheard over the comlink. "What's wrong, Holly?" Artemis asked worriedly. He'd messed up again. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He should've known –

"This is very nice of you, Arty," she replied, "but I'm allergic to pollen."

_**This came to be because I myself am allergic to pollen. Just thought it'd be a laugh.**_


	7. Argument

~Argument~

"Well, if that's what it's going to be like, then I won't give you back your shoe!" She dangled his custom-made loafer in his face.

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

They lasted all of two minutes before Artemis broke. "Alright, alright, I take it back."

"I want to hear more than just that, Arty."

The prodigy rolled his eyes, seemingly exasperated. "Tomatoes are vegetables," he said resignedly, in a tone that argued otherwise.

"Good enough for me," Holly replied, grinning. She tossed him his shoe and sat back, a satisfied expression on her tanned features.

From the corner of the room, Juliet shook her head in mock disapproval. "The things you guys argue on never cease to amaze me."

"You shouldn't be so surprised, Juliet," Artemis said evenly.

"I don't know, we do have a lot of weird arguments –"

"After a while, you would think that she would be used to –"

_There they go again, _the former wrestler thought.


	8. Eyes

~Eyes~

Minerva, being a very logical person, could safely say that eyes did not have the ability to express emotion. All the gooey junk in books about how "his eyes were calling out to her soul, so hopeful and invigorated, and they were showing true love" was just that — gooey junk. It was the eyebrows that betrayed feeling, it was slightest upturning of the corner of one's mouth that meant they were trying not to smile and failing, it was the skittish pulse of a heart. Eyes did nothing.

She ingrained the thought on the inside of her skull, she drilled it into her own head, and she stood tall and proud to defend her thoughts if anyone ever dared oppose her. All of her finery, her grand composure slipped and melted away when her eyes met with Artemis'. The perfect blue, they were, clear and sharp. Though she might not really love Artemis himself, she did love his eyes.

Did — as in past tense.

For when he finally attempted contact with her once more, and when she finally could see those eyes, there was only one left — one blue eye, and one hazel. Minerva did not ask about his new eye; she was too busy moping over the loss of his old one. His eyes were never the same again, however much Minerva wished them to revert back.

_**My views insofar have really liked this one, and I do too.**_


	9. Complacency

_**For those who don't know, complacency is like a content ignorance of threat.**_

~Complacency~

Young and innocent, ignorant of danger. Danger that ate away at hope and skulked in the dreariest places. Danger that filtered into the very air, danger that shattered shields of emotionlessness, danger that provoked others and ignited fear.

No1, so foolish he was, was young and innocent. Ignorant of danger.

Danger that descended upon him.

When he finally realized that hulking, omnipresent cloud bode ill well, it was too late, for danger had caught him.

So complacent — until it was too late.__


	10. Special

~Special~

The young boy felt his heart stir as he watched the children from afar. Several boys and girls were running, shrieking, and whooping childishly on the other side of the park — and they sure looked like they were having a grand old time. Though he tried to convince himself that their antics with petty and juvenile, he couldn't help the wave of resentment that caught in the back of his throat.

"Mom — Mother," Artemis said quietly, correcting himself upon meeting his father's patronizing stare.

"Yes, Arty?"

"Mother… why can't I play with the other kids?"

Mrs. Fowl carefully set down her magazine, smoothing it out on her lap. She glanced up at her husband uncomfortably, then met the eyes of her son. The boy hadn't missed a thing, and he knew his parents were keeping something from him.

"You can't play with the other kids because you're… special," was the response she settled for. Artemis resisted the compulsive urge to roll his eyes and huff — Fowls never stooped to such behavior.

And years later, when his Atlantis Complex fully emerged, he knew what "special" meant.

There's something wrong with you.

_One of mah favorites, personally._


	11. Temper

~Temper~

"If," Commander Julius Root, Council member and renowned police officer in Haven's society growled,"if you ever sing that again, I will personally liquidize you into a vat of sweartoad slime. And then I will pack the vat in an airproof carton and ship it to the _Arctic Circle._"

Despite his menacing tone and threat, the two (inferior, one might add) individuals simply grinned back up at him. It was rather strange indeed to see Artemis' face stretched in such a playful smirk instead of a condescending one, but that was not Root's main concern. His main concern was to wipe that smile right off his face and make sure it never crossed it again. Then he'd hire Artemis as a new recruit for the sole reason of getting to fire him.

Still, Holly's mouth opened wide and chirped, "Anger management, you can handle it! Take a deep breath and count to ten! One, two –"

"Out!" The word must've shaken the underground building to its roots, for the cadets paused at the noise and listened. The ones closest could hear a faint tune.

"But you're still angry, so let's sing it again! Anger –"

_**Don't really like this one…**_


	12. Interruption

~Interruption~

She burst out of the shute and into the fresh air — it'd been ages since she could escape the confines of her office. The cold was like a slap to the face, and she loved that. It was more real to feel temperature, the sharp breeze; to hear the sweet chirrups of birds as they greeted each other. Today, the usually careful Major didn't bother doing a pre-flight check. She set it to highest gear and took off, high and fast. She'd finally woken up, she was awake and _alive. _And now that she was aboveground, she'd stop by those gorgeous mountains and trail her fingers through the snow-topped peaks, and skim over the ocean so that the saltwater would spray across her suit, and –

"Holly, I know you're excited, but we really need to get that fish smuggler bound by two-thirty, Haven Central time," Foaly chirped.

She knew it was unreasonable, but she was seeing red. How dare he shatter her thoughts and stop her reverie?

How dare he interrupt, when she was finally free?

_**Meh… didn't really like this one…**_


	13. Target

~Target~

She could see it already — "Name the five best areas to shoot a person," Madame Ko would say smoothly, pacing in front of her class. She'd turn abruptly in front her victim, maybe a new recruit, and bark their name — for example, "Mark!"

"Head, heart, foot, dominant arm, and neck," he'd rattle off in rapid succession.

"Good. Got that, recruits?"

"Yes, Sensei," they'd say, the epitome of obedience.

And before they'd know it, they'd be out in the sim-battlefield, all instinct and guts — it was shoot or be shot.

She knew that, even there, when the enemies were only crudely crafted dummies, she wouldn't be able to shoot a person in the heart or head. It wasn't in her to kill. Maiming one could stand, you could heal that, after all, but to pull the trigger on a vital organ with the intent to take away life was something she couldn't do.

And though she had the ability to hit the target, she didn't have the heart to do so.


	14. Warmth

~Warmth~

"The twins?" It looked as if the great Artemis Fowl was actually nervous about something, unconfident.

"Yes, your parents had twins while you were away — beautiful baby boys," Butler said amiably. He quickly trotted to the door, taking Artemis in tow. "C'mon, you have to see them."

And moments later, as he peered into the ornately carved crib, something stirred in him — as if it'd been waiting for such an oppurtunity to reveal itself. Like before, when he had felt magic to be blue, he could imagine that this had a color — a soft yellow, warm and spreading like a contagious disease, though not nearly as deadly. It bloomed like a plant, this warm, happy feeling — it heated that heart that had stood through so much hostility and sorrow. It mended and healed, ever twisting, ever turning, just looking at the boys. Those boys, that new life.

New life.

It was about time he'd started one, and now this warmth seemed to be his last ingredient — that thing that was missing before, that first step.

Warmth.

_**Should I change the title to this? Don't think it quite fits; maybe "New Life" would be better?**_


	15. Can

~Can~__

"See, this is why I can't stop being your bodyguard. If I do, things like _this _will happen!" Butler snapped, fussing with his oversized first aid kit.

"Butler, I'm fine," Artemis said weakly. He turned his head to the side tiredly and made a soft retching noise. "Though I do feel a bit sick. I don't think I've ever lost this much blood."

"Oh, Artemis, what am I ever going to do with you?" Butler asked, shaking his head disparagingly. "You can't even prepare food without me."

"I may be lying on the floor and near unconsciousness from blood loss, but don't let that deceive you," the Irish boy reprimanded, gasping for breath. "I can prepare food. I just did." He gestured toward the countertop with the hand that wasn't half-bandaged and dripping slightly with blood.

"Artemis…" Butler said slowly. "This isn't prepared food."

"I opened a can of food. I think that counts."

"But these… these are canned _peaches_. That doesn't suffice as a meal. You, of all people, should know that."

"What?" Artemis sat up and carefully picked up his opened can. "I thought it was… I thought it was…"

"Do you mean to tell me that you gouged a slash across your hand, a slash that will obviously leave a scar, so that you could open a can of peaches?"

Artemis closed his eyes in exasperation and fell back onto the floor, wincing as his back impacted with the tiled floor beneath him.

"Yes," he said with as much dignity as he could possibly muster, "I do."

_**Haha, Arty the failure of a cook! XD. Inspired 'cause I, myself, can't open cans. It's harder than it looks! Ah-pssht! I can, however, actually cook some simple stuff. SO HA. XD**_


	16. Love

_**There's an edited excerpt from ~Bouquet~ in here. It fit in nicely, so I kinda reused it, but with a different perspective. Hope you like – this one is… I don't know. I just don't like it so much.**_

**~Love~**

She leaned back on her elbows, blinking up at the stars. "It really is nice tonight," she commented. "Very clear, considering pollution and all."

Her companion coughed down the lump in his throat, looking away. "Yeah," he replied awkwardly. "It's beautiful." _Just like you._

The elf turned onto her side in the grass, one eyebrow raised. "You said you had something to tell me."

Artemis nodded stiffly, going over the words in his head. _No time like the present, _he reminded himself. He looked her in the eyes — different, distinct, contrasting — and opened his mouth –

Just as a bird flew over and released its feces from its bowels.

Oh, she'd laughed heartily enough at that, but his chance had been lost, had dissipated like the morning dew on the curve of a blade of grass. Beautiful and promising, dew was, and yet very delicate and fleeting — it could and _would _be there one moment and gone the next.

Artemis scowled. He dropped the battered tome, exasperated, and glared patronizingly at his notes. "It's impossible," he whispered. "I'll never know."

Perfectly arranged, perfectly aligned — he'd made sure it was as such before he sent it out. Delicate petals spanned out gracefully from each flower, the elegant curve of each leaf was soft to the touch. The thorns had been carefully plucked off the stems of the roses so that they were slender and smoothed, the pleasant smell of grass and sweetness curled around it as if to protect the flowers from harm's reach.

It was absolutely flawless. The moment was approaching, and he knew it; he only regretted that he would not be able to do this in person. Holly, after all, had had a rather busy week. Soon, she would profess her love for the bouquet, and in turn, Artemis would profess his love for –

The thought was abruptly cut off when he heard a gentle, saddened sigh. "What's wrong, Holly?" Artemis asked worriedly. He'd messed up again. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He should've known –

"This is very nice of you, Arty," she replied, "but I'm allergic to pollen."

"Oh." He cut the link, cursing to the high heavens.

_Take her to a romantic dinner! _the book chirped happily. Artemis glared at the words as if they were offending him (which they were, one could note). _No matter what she seems like on the outside, she probably loves a gentleman — kind, polite, and gentle. Try to –_

He snapped the book shut, running his elegant fingers through his hair and glancing fleetingly at his ornate wall clock. "Impossible," he muttered again.

He shuffled forward, ever conscious of the body emanating heat beside him. It contrasted heavily with the sharp, cool night air.

"Holly?"

"Yeah?"

"I –" And here, he ungracefully tripped and stumbled, crashing to the ground in a flurry of limbs.

Holly grinned crookedly down at him, brushing a stray lock of hair behind her pointed ear and holding out a slender hand. "Need help?"

He smiled begrudgingly and took the hand, sadly aware of his most recent failure.

_Start small. She'll be intimidated if you try holding her hand right away._

_Smile! Be friendly! No one wants a party po –_

_Talk about what _she's _intereste –_

_Creativity counts._

_Lose purposely. Every single time._

_Love letters — classic! Really works –_

"Useless."

And so another book slammed shut.

"What would you do if a doctor told you that you only had a week left to live?" Artemis asked conversationally.

She paused, tipping her head to the side. "I'd go around and confess all of my lies, fears, hopes, and dreams. 'Remember when I took the day off because I had troll pox?' I would say. 'Well, I lied. The partners board said that I was supposed to be paired up with Grub, so I made a last-minute excuse to escape him.'" She laughed, and Artemis conjured up a smile even through his tiredness.

"And you?"

He swallowed. "I'd tell you that I love you."

Indeed, a rather awkward silence followed after that proclamation, but as soon as Holly recovered, she said, "Don't tell me that you only have one week to live and that's why you brought up the topic."

_You don't need a candlelit dinner to say 'I love you,' _Artemis wrote in his looping, lilting script. _You don't need chocolates, flowers, or elaborate presents. The poor can love. The chocolateless and flowerless can love. We all can — anywhere, anytime, anyhow, anyway, any species, anyone. The one thing you can't do with love, though, is make it. Love comes when it sees fit. Love is never found. Love cannot be duplicated._

_And love can never be understood, unless one feels it themself. _

_Love is a funny, fickle thing. But if it's meant to be, it'll find a way to work._

He smiled lightly at the sleeping elf upon his shoulder. _It worked for me._

_**Well, I have this awful feeling in my gut that says, "I probably shouldn't post this failure." And you know what? I'm posting it anyway. Go on, speak. You're not mute, are you? (If you are, that's still no excuse. Typing requires no oral functions whatsoever.)**_

_**Why, will you look at that? When you scroll down to the bottom of the page, there's a function that allows you to review! Amazing, right? I mean, why on God's green Earth would they put it there?**__****_

_**Oh, I don't know, maybe so you can **_review.


	17. The Female Warrior

_**I wrote this for a class I'm taking in one of those educational summer camps. It kinda fits Holly, Minerva, and Opal, even though I didn't intend it to. It's just for strong women in general. And while I'm not much of a poet, I thought I'd put this up. Thanks for reading my ridiculously long A/N. XD.**_

~The Female Warrior~

They do not see past

Bows of lace, skirts of frills;

To them, we are only

Treasures.

Something to protect;

To scale mountains for

To tame seas for

To go those thousand miles for

We are

Ornaments

Decorations

An accessory for the warrior who has

Claimed us

But we

Can

Scale mountains

Tame seas

Go those thousand miles

If others would just

Let us be

What we aspire to be

What we can be

What we will be

Because

At the end of the day

We are _also _warriors

More than

They'll ever know


	18. Introduction

~Introduction~

"Have fun, Arty!"

"Yes, mother," Artemis sighed, acting as if the benediction was more of an order to him. Angeline waved cheerily at Artemis' back, but he didn't turn around. Instead, the boy faced the familiar wrought-iron gates, imagining the inevitable boredoom to be a heavy cloud about to release its load of rain.

St. Bartleby's boarding school — a "safe haven for children to learn, grow, and develop". In his eyes, a private school chock-full of arrogant yet lesser beings that he honestly didn't want to be associated with. Artemis hoisted his pack onto his shoulder, noting that it felt slightly lighter — probably due to his more recent travels, in which he'd developed more muscle. He made his way down the path, hoping to go unnoticed.

He wasn't thirty yards into the school's property when a voice cut through his haze of dread. "Hey, you!"

Artemis faced the speaker warily. "Yes?" he asked. It sounded a bit pathetic, even to him.

"Artemis, right?" The boy stuck out his hand, which, surprisingly, looked sanitary enough to the Irish genius. Artemis cautiously inspected it, wondering if it was a joke, until he looked up into the boy's face.

His expression was the most open and welcome that Artemis had ever seen — after all, the boy dealt with criminals and black market traders on a regular weekly basis. He had a pleasant smile on his face, wide and a bit toothy. Despite his automatic instinct to shy away, he took the proffered hand.

"Yeah. Artemis, Artemis Fowl. Nice to meet you."

_**Review and I'll find my motivation.**_

_… **wow, it feels so **_awkward _**to be writing again. Been a while, hasn't it? I feel like I've worsened. XD**_


	19. Love 2

~Love (2)~

"It's a weakness."

"Artemis! It sounds like you don't… like you don't even care! It's not a weakness. Love is very special and pure. It's the highest form of gentleness and caring and… and if you don't understand that, then –"

"It's a weakness, Holly. Love makes it so easy to take advantage of someone else. Sometimes, threats only work if you target their innocent lover."

Holly's nostrils flared. "Only you could think of it that way! Tell me, Artemis — what if you weren't a criminal? What would you think then?"

"It doesn't matter, Holly." He turned away from her. "I'm the heir to the Fowl empire. Once my father retires or passes on, the fortune will be given to me, and I must protect it. I don't have a choice."

Silence.

"What if you did?"

"We are not playing the What If game. This conversation is over."

Holly pursed her lips and left the room swiftly, face grim. _And I thought that you might've loved me._

_**Failure… I didn't know what to do with this one. I'd intended to make it happy.**_


	20. Love 3

_Something I wrote quite randomly not too long ago…_

~Love (3)~

It'd all sounded so much better in his head, looked so much better in the worn notebook he'd written it in, the notebook he'd wrecked. It was covered in his scribble, mostly crossed-out phrases and sentences, things that had sounded too awkward and strong for such a gentle situation. Just those few beginning sentences had taken several weeks of continuous thought, and now…

And now, it seemed petty. This was a disgrace; this was the epitome of failure. _He'd _failed.

Still she smiled, laughed a little, but not mockingly. As if his pitiful attempt was endearing, one could say. She seemed comfortable enough with the whole matter, standing and nodding and listening like she always did, like she did when they conversed about any number of random things.

"Well, uh, I'm just trying to say that—" Here, she shook her head in light exasperation.

"It's OK. I get it."

_**Reviews, anyone? I love them…**_


	21. Light

Been meaning to this for forever, but I keep stopping halfway through.

~Light~

Dark. Silent. Calm. Peaceful. As noisy and obnoxious dwarves seemed in society, they liked their space and their peace. The sweet smell of fertile earth, of the mineral-rich dirt. He breathed in. _Serenity. Heaven. Heaven and serenity._

_An almighty crash. _

It echoes through the layers of the earth, rippling like disturbed water. Waves breaking out from the source and amplifying. His eyes flew open. _Panic. _

_The mines._

_They're caving._

Run, run, as fast as he could. Burrowing, digging, fleeing. The dark surrounded him. The familiar, safe dark was no longer his haven.

The tremors echoed frighteningly. The dirt was loosening above him as he tunnelled, desperately seeking to be free of the pressure of the world upon his head.

_Weight that would fall and crush him, just like that. Just like that._

He sought what he usually dreaded, the bright sunlight, where no ceiling threatened to collapse upon his head.

Less pressure. Less distance, then. Close. Close.

Almost there.

Light, light, light. He could feel the ground warming, a result of the sun bathing upon it.

Run, run, run, as fast as you can.

Yet it caught him, for he was no gingerbread man.

_**Reviews, anyone? I love them…**_

_**Rushedly written. **_


	22. Mute City

_**The basic concept behind this is that you put your iPod on shuffle and write drabbles on the first ten songs that come up. You can't skip any songs and you can only write the drabble for the duration of that song. From now on, drabbles with a song title and artists in front of them will be based on the song. I can't really edit these, but I'd still appreciate any criticism on them. **_

~Mute City (F-Zero)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=TN36CetQw6I

_It was like coffee_, Artemis mused.

You knew it wasn't quite good for you, but it helped you with some aspects of your life (such as staying awake), so you used it.

This was, had always been, would probably always will be his coffee. Shady business deals with shady business partners, meetings in back alleyways and dark streets. It was dirty. It was wrong. Holly hated it.

He still did it.

Force of habit, perhaps. It was, after all, the way that he'd always lived.

And he loved the thrill. Nothing else could quite give him it — not a rollercoaster, not a bomb, not love. Incomparable. Destructable.


	23. Fearless

~Fearless (Taylor Swift)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=6pC024Dap70

It was, essentially, a first time for both of them. Neither knew where to put their hands and feet, neither knew what to say or how to act.

Either way, they both enjoyed it. Artemis found himself smiling, laughing more. It was something he'd known not of before, something that he had missed while he sped through life.

Starting at the age of a young boy, Artemis had always tried to fly through things — become more advanced, more experienced in everything. To become better.

But this new relationship — this new sensation that he had with Holly — made him a better person than he had ever been. He loved it.

He loved her.

He hoped she loved him back, lest his heart break on the first go.

_First round around the track. Running, sprinting, tripping a bit. Hope it doesn't hurt, though._

_I'm tired of hurting._

_I don't like hurting._

"Arty?"

He smiled and tucked his hand in hers, out to face the world.


	24. Juliette

~Juliette (SHINee)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=mNQycE4NgtI (0:59 for Minho's rap ^^)

It soon became an addiction. Trouble would stare after her every chance he got, longing and hoping and wishing, oh-so-reverently. He needed more.

But the subject of his affections, one Holly Short, seemed oblivious enough. _She used to be so perceptive. She could've read right through me before._

Currently, she was lost in her own love. The love for another.

The love for that Mud Boy.

And he hated that, but he stowed it away for another day whilst he moped about the office.

Chix grinned at him and simply suggested flirting, but he knew better. Holly was as good as taken.

And even though it pained him so, he kept coming back for more — more of a delicious taste of poison.

_It consumed him, and it should've worried him. It didn't. _

_It was scary._

_Horrifying._


	25. What Can I Say

~What Can I Say (Carrie Underwood ft. Sons of Sylvia)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=Dy1jP-cYAjA

He was horrible with this sap. Julius' brow wrinkled as he contemplated the situation. He didn't know how else to deal with this.

Out on the battlefield, he was quite the glorified warrior. He was so fluent, so comfortable with procedure, but love didn't quite have a procedure. It was too unfamiliar to him.

Even worse than his Cupid skills were his communication skills. He'd never been too fantastic with words – of course, becoming a Captain meant strategically mapping out your words, but he had avoided taking the necessary course. Julius was more straightforward, to-the-point. There's no beating around the bush for him

Love was so gentle, fragile. Perhaps like a newborn child.

Wonderful, but you didn't know how to approach it. A single move could, after all, make or break anything.

So, the fool he was, he let it all go.


	26. You're Not Sorry

~You're Not Sorry (Taylor Swift)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=jA6sueOuZm4

She was too nice.

It was a bit laughable to think — the strong, proud Holly Short was _too _nice? She always seemed so curt and brusque at work — _do this, do that. _No side comments — _I love your shoes, by the way; would you like to grab something after work?_

She didn't associate herself much with the others, but she had slipped up with Trouble. She had let down her walls for just a moment too long, smiled just a tad too much.

She let Trouble in.

_And the trouble he caused…._

So here she stood, broken, from her own foolish actions. Her heart had been wrecked, and now she slaved away, putting up her walls once more. Holly berated herself as she did so.

_This is why you don't trust males._

_This is why you've turned them away for so long._

Then she met Artemis.

Too quickly, her walls crumbled again.

She didn't quite mind as much.


	27. White Horse

~White Horse (Taylor Swift)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=vykrhIJdgSg

"I'm too busy."

"Oh. OK." Raine cut the call so he wouldn't hear her sigh, long and soft, but quiet and heavy. It'd been awhile since she'd last seen Julius for more than three minutes at a time, and she'd requested dinner only to be turned down again.

She still loved him, though.

*~{}~*

"Come to my house on the weekend?"

"I wish I could, Raine. The new case? It has so much paperwork attached to it." A dry laugh sounded on the other end. "So I'll to finish that."

"Oh."

*~{}~*

"Do you think we could…"

"No. Can't."

*~{}~*

So, eventually, she stopped calling. He didn't call back, either.


	28. One

~One (SHINee)~ **http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=79QyQFUbZWw**

"I'm sorry. I got jealous."

"Don't be. You know you're the only one for me," Artemis murmured.


	29. Forever and Always

~Forever and Always (Piano Version) (Taylor Swift)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=CEFnc-2hQKE

"What happened? To our relationship? To us?" Her eyes were the widest he'd ever seen, so he looked away.

_How could you say 'no' to this face? _she'd once said.

He couldn't. Either way, he had to break it off. He brushed off her prying questions, her harsh comments.

"I'm sorry, Raine. This can't continue. We both have a duty."

"Things can change," she snapped back. Vinyaya, fighting. The feminist. The one who believed in revolutionaries.

Julius was about tradition.

He wondered how they'd gotten together, gotten into this mess. He knew Haven didn't quite accept them. The media had already been a bit skeptical — _are the standards lower now? — _before, and they really didn't want a commander (who never should've been a commander in the first place) in a romantic relationship with another (better) commander.

It just didn't work that way.


	30. White Christmas

~White Christmas (Taylor Swift)~ **.com/watch?v=9iEfX6AvfYI**

"It's been awhile since I've seen snow," Holly admitted quietly. She glanced about her, taking in the sight. The Fowl Manor grounds had been heavily coated with snow.

It was truly serene, and she was glad to be able to share it with such a good friend of hers. Artemis had been unusually happy lately, probably at the prospect of leaving Saint Bartleby's to spend time with his family — goodness knew he didn't like the boarding school.

But when he pressed a kiss to her mouth, she had to admit that there might've been another reason.

And the snow swirled about them, pure and white.


	31. I Know You Won't

~I Know You Won't (Carrie Underwood)~ **.com/watch?v=4aa0jVO_zFc**

"Don't tell her. She'll be crushed. I'll just have to… break it off."

"How are you going to do this gently?" Briar asked, worried for his friend.

"I… don't quite know. I'll try to build up tension during the weeks or something. Make it so that she'll want to distance herself from me. I can figure a plan out. Just don't tell her."

"Alright," Briar muttered.

*~{}~*

"What's wrong with you lately?" Vinyaya said huffily. "Why won't you tell me? Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do," Julius said. "Our relationship… it just doesn't have the same spark as it used to." _Lies._

Vinyaya frowned. She knew him to be lying.

_Offended, she was._

But she broke it off, for it seemed to be what he wanted her to do.

Weeks after, he died from a long-lasting cancer diagnosis.

She wept.

She should've known.

He had tried to soften the blow, but it hadn't made it any easier.


	32. Hello, Goodbye

Hello, Goodbye (The Beatles)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=9zPOT8Z3UlM

Opposites? Yes, but of course. They were black and white, the moon and the sun. The analogy seemed so plain, so ridiculable and laughable, but it applied to them. They couldn't be quite much more different.

Artemis had tried opening up to her, tried stepping out of his comfort zone. Holly had appreciated his effort, attempting to be positive even with his numerous failures.

But when the two finally sat down for dinner, intent on filling their stomachs and perhaps having some sort of intelligent conversation, they realized that they were both lost for words.

What could a human and a fairy talk about? There was nothing that both of them were interested in, nothing that they really had in common. Holly and Artemis were complete opposites. They were hopeless. There was no way a cold-hearted criminal could date a strict police officer.

Somehow, they made it work.


	33. Pretend To Be Nice

~Pretend to be Nice (Josie and the Pussycats)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=xziL0fQw3Ow&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL8DFBC7C372CB189C (Sorry, this is where I first found the song, and I couldn't find a lyrics version ^^)

She was trying. Couldn't he tell? Couldn't he stop it?

_Stop the hurting, the insults, the sharp looks and glances._

She hadn't chosen to love him. It wasn't her fault. The least he could do was let her in, give her a chance, and he wouldn't even do that.

Holly had no idea how this would work, how they could be. It seemed impossible-improbable-implausible. It was a miracle that they'd gone past their ways and set up a friendship of sorts.

Was she pushing it? Would this only worsen their unsteady bonds?

_She would risk it._

_But please don't break my heart, rip it out and throw it on the floor to be trampled._

_I don't want to start over._

_I don't want to leave this._

When Artemis said yes, she knew that everything would work.


	34. Misses Glass

~Misses Glass (Leona Lewis)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=p733n0elAKM

She couldn't do this, couldn't do this. She told Julius as much, but the man only laughed and snubbed out the cigar that he had had between his fingers.

"Don't sweat it, Raine," Julius said. "Give it a shot."

"Alright," she said, relenting. "But if this doesn't work… gods help me, I'll kill you."

He grinned right back at her. She was happy that she'd said yes.

*~{}~*

"I never wanted to see him again," Raine murmured, burrowing her head in Julius' chest. She felt embarassed, but mostly relieved. "Promise me you won't leave me."

"I promise."

*~{}~*

It wasn't long after when Julius left.


	35. Hey Jude

~Hey Jude (The Beatles) http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=4mjGsdF3k1s

"Stop intruding on my life!"

"You're my sister — "

"I'm your full-grown sister. I can take care of myself!"

He took a step towards her. "Juliet, listen — "

"No!" She ran.

He chased after, but she hid.

A bitter taste lingered in his mouth. _You're my sister. I have to protect you._

*~{}~*

"Dom, I love you, I really do. But can you please let me see him?"

"I can tell that he doesn't mean you well. He'll break your heart."

"Everyone gets their heart broken a couple of times," Juliet said defiantly. "No one gets it right the first time."

*~{}~*

It was an I-told-you-so moment. Butler knew this, but instead, he sat behind his sister, stroking her long blonde hair.

"It's OK, Juliet."

Silence. "You were right."

Domovoi didn't say anything.

Her heart calmed over, settling down from its crashing waves. _The soft lap of the water against the shore, soothing and peaceful. _

"Thanks, Dom."

"You're welcome."

*~{}~*

"Hey, beautiful."

Juliet frowned at the man that sat beside her, but her ever-faithful brother nodded.

_Go on. Be happy._

So Juliet smiled back.


	36. Bodyguard

__Bodyguard (SHINee)~ **.com/watch?v=btE1fnwNEG0**

"Be on your guard when we go for lunch today, students," Madame Ko said strictly.

"Yes, Sensei," the group chorused. They were all excited about finally leaving the isolated building set into the side of a mountain.

They filed out. Butler breathed in. He didn't know much about the world, but he loved it.

*~{}~*

He'd only seen the girl once, once during that outing. Soon she had disappeared off, giggling with her friends. She was pretty.

He knew pretty faces didn't mean much, but something seemed sincere about her. He liked her.

_I'll love you, protect you, be your bodyguard. Let me. Please?_


	37. My All

My All (Mariah Carey)~ **.com/watch?v=AiMs3vzrr2g**

"Say you love me?"

"I love you."

_What sap, _Holly thought, chiding herself. She couldn't explain why her grin stretched so wide, though.

*~{}~*

"Holly, we know it's probably nothing," Foaly said, "but Kelp is getting concerned about your attachment to that Mud Boy."

"Who, Artemis?" Holly laughed, masking her worry. Her pulse quickened. _Foaly's your friend. He wouldn't separate you._

"Actually, I'm kinda worried about it, too. It's illegal to have a romantic relationship with a human. Artemis is an exception for many things in fairy society, but I really don't think this would go down well."

_Shoot. _She had to warn Artemis.

"So we're forbidding you from seeing him."

_Shoot. Shoot._


	38. The SHINee World

~The SHINee World (SHINee)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=74iUl_n82X4 (Too epic. If you can't handle it, don't watch ^^)

"Wow…"

"Welcome to my world."

Holly stared around her. Artemis' study really was something — more computers than Foaly's central hub and mirrors everywhere. Everything had a sleek, modern feel to it, and the reflections in the mirrors only made the room look bigger.

She stepped over the threshold, fascinated. Artemis took her hand and led her in.

Should she be trusting a criminal mastermind so soon after he kidnapped her?

For some reason, she was willing to be thrown in blindfolded. _Trust. I trust you._


	39. Runaway

Runaway (Cascada)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=BqQ0dtrw0Kw

She didn't belong anywhere. Boys on the street always looked at her funny — what kind of girl was she, so tomboyish? One had to look twice to confirm her gender. She didn't like the stares. She didn't like going back, retreating to her home, though, either. _Home meant daddy, and daddy meant pain._

So she ran, ran away, escaped. She left reality for a few brief moments, let the wind blow through her too-short hair.

Her muscles would cramp. Her breath would catch. Her undeveloped lungs would strain.

She had no home, no return point, no destination. She only wanted to leave, get away.

_Dreamer. Dream chaser._

She liked that. She was a dreamer.

_Get your heads out of the clouds, _they'd say. She didn't want to.

Reality hurt so much.


	40. Nu Abo

~Nu Abo (f(x))~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=LcD_SmQW8t0

Joining the LEP? Brave, noble, determined, hardworking. A boy that tried walking down such a rough path was applauded for his great choice. The police force was always lauded.

For a boy, of course.

A girl… a girl must've been a _weirdo-freak-lesbian _to do such a thing.

What was wrong with her? There must've been something wrong with her. No girl wants to join the LEP. Remember the last one?

Opal. Opal Koboi.

This girl would surely turn out to be the same — insane, evil.

Holly went to the seminar anyway.

People stared.

_I'll go my way, thank you very much._


	41. Outta My Head

Outta My Head (Leona Lewis)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=PViLXuWVRpA

"You'll come back tomorrow," Trouble promised drunkenly.

Holly shut the door. "I don't quite think I will."

She wasn't listening to him anymore. She'd never listen to a man today.

_They were all the same._

_Holly Short, feminist. Holly Short, warrior. Holly Short, idol and example to young girls everywhere._

She wasn't falling for this anymore.

"Get back here," Trouble slurred from the other side of the door. He hiccuped.

She left.


	42. Ground Theme 2

~Ground Theme 2 (Super Mario Bros)~ **.com/watch?v=OTF5gn5S0zs**

_Life gives you one chance, just once, unless the one who must forgive you spares your soul._

Perhaps he was being overly dramatic here, but he knew that he'd fumbled with his controller, foolishly lost a life.

The figure on the screen would blink several times, the health bar would be highlighted. _Game over, _the pixels spell out.

But that's OK. There's a retry button.

So you play again.

Life was like a video game, wasn't it?

Artemis smiled weakly.

_No undos, though. No back buttons or retries. _

He sat back in his chair, lamenting his loss.

His communicator rang.

_One up, _he thought, smiling.


	43. The Way I Loved You

~The Way I Loved You (Taylor Swift)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=D7CpWqkXSTY

"I don't quite know how to do this," Artemis admitted sheepishly. "Of course, I've read about the concept, but conducting the steps is much different. And we both know I'm physically weak, so –"

"Just get in the water, Arty."

"I don't know about this…" Artemis repeated, wading into the pool.

Holly rolled her eyes as a wave hit her face. She spluttered. "Oh, you're so going down."

Artemis grinned, mismatched eyes twinkling.

*~{}~*

"You're doing it wrong," Holly said patiently. "You turn your head to the side to breathe instead of going straight up for air. That makes it slower."

"Oh," Trouble said, smiling widely.

Holly mustered a smile back.

_Wasn't the same, though. Couldn't ever be the same._


	44. Attack

Attack (Fire Emblem)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=TvymJMU1K9A

"Charge!" a boy cried happily, running clumsily over the grass towards another boy. The two fell over from the impact and they lay on the grass, tussling.

Artemis stared at them from a little ways across the school grounds, one eyebrow raised in a perfect arch. _Elegant, sophisticated. _No one could've pinned him for fifteen with his demeanor.

Holly materialized. "Loosen up, Arty."

Artemis laughed softly. "I don't think I will."


	45. Misery Business

~Misery Business (Paramore)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=tRYiI8a0CkY

Holly grinned. A thrill ran up and down her spine. She loved it.

"In your face, Minerva," she whispered as Artemis closed the door on her face.

She'd won.

Minerva fell to her knees awkwardly, looking up at the ornate front door. "Artemis," she whined. "Artemis, why?"

_Because I have him wrapped around my little finger, but of course._


	46. Waltz No 2

**~Waltz No. 2 (Shostakovich)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=mmCnQDUSO4I**

Angeline loved to dance.

As a young child, she would skip over the carpeted floors all around the house, giggling and prancing, eyes alight without a care in the world. She loved watching others dance. She loved the thrill it gave her to express herself with music.

She loved a man who could dance.

Artemis Senior, the typical spoiled rich boy that he was, knew how to dance – to waltz, for that matter – after years of practice. She loved him for that.

She loved spinning around the ballroom, locked in his arms, smiling up at him as the chandeliers above shone down. The moment felt special, beautiful, unparalleled by anything else.

When Artemis Senior was to be presumed dead, she only wished to dance with him again.

_**Er… yeah… we played this in band for our last concert and I had it on my iPod because I liked it. You should've seen me flip out when it came up. Of the 550+ songs I had, it had to be this one? **_


	47. I Won't Say I'm in Love

**~I Won't Say I'm in Love (Meg from Hercules)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=Yl6Yyl7iZhs**

This was ridiculous.

This was ridiculous and Holly knew it.

She had taught herself to block out those feelings – or at least, she thought she had, but here she was again.

It only could have been because she had been demoted to the age of a teenager. Obviously, her body would react accordingly. This was, therefore, a one-time thing.

Caballine saw it for what it was, though.

Minerva saw it for what it was, though.

She saw what it was.

She couldn't believe herself.


	48. Vs Parasite Queen

**~Vs. Parasite Queen (Metroid)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=nxM5_Zl7Eu4**

Artemis whittled away at wood, pounded away at metal. He sat at his lab bench, welding mask on, oversized gloves sliding off of fingers every now and then only to be jerked back up hastily. Sparks flew. He grinned.

He was creating, inventing. Innovating. Fabricating something new. It was glorious. It wasn't necessarily for the greater good, but that was okay.

_**These are steadily getting worse, aren't they? Ugh. *bangs head on desk* I haven't written anything in ages. **_


	49. Poker Face

**~Poker Face (Lady GaGa)~**

Juliet sat contentedly at the table, legs crossed, gaze unwavering, as she tossed two chips into the middle. "Raise by two hundred."

"What? It's only the first round, missy!" a man barked, obviously displeased at his hand and the turn of events.

"Take it or fold," Juliet said. She smirked.

The man growled. He tossed in his share.

The dealer dealt. The players watched apprehensively, tried to play their respective cards right. Juliet's mouth stayed in its position, one side quirked up, as if she knew she had it in the bag.

"Raise by eight hundred."

The man glared at her.

He needn't know that she was bluffing, though.


	50. Love Again

**~Love Again (S.M. the Ballad)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=X6hfke0HJJs (no lyrics, sorry)**

"Oh! Holly!" Trouble said, surprised. He fidgeted awkwardly in the cafeteria's lunch line, wishing that he had brought something from home.

Holly, from behind him, quirked an eyebrow. "Hey, Trubs. Long time no see."

_Yeah. I've kinda been avoiding you. _"Ah, yeah! How's the position? Do you like being a major?"

"Mm… I know it's an honor, but we all know that I hate the paperwork."

Trouble smiled meekly. "Oh. Anything else up?"

"Yeah, the Council finally passed that bit of legislation. After much debate, you know."

_D'Arvit. _"Ah… which one again?"

Holly looked unperturbed. "The one that lets me get together with the Mud Boy."


	51. If We Ever Meet Again

**~If We Ever Meet Again (Timbaland ft. Katy Perry)~ http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=FqxhZy_ALQ4**

Minerva eyed the slight boy and his bodyguard from across the street, aware that he was doing the same to her. He didn't look too much of a threat – after all, he only merely emitted coldness, lack of social skills, and snotty rich kid. She supposed that she was a snotty rich kid, too, but that wasn't of relevance at the morning.

No, what _was _relevant was that they both happened to be here at a site that may or may not procure a demon in the next few minutes. He probably knew this. She definitely did.

_I'll beat you this time, though, Artemis Fowl._

She grinned from behind her dainty wine glass, careful not to give too much away. Minerva full well knew that they were bound to cross paths again. She'd be waiting for when that happened.


	52. Dark

**~Dark~**

Artemis sat inside his room, shutters down. They needn't be. It was dark outside as well.

He liked that.

He liked the dark.

The world was so much simpler when there were only hazy shapes to be perceived. There was less judgment. Less knowledge and a poorer sense of awareness, perhaps, but it was nice to be ignorant. He missed being young. Younger than he was now, at least.

Younger, when he had no business in politics. When he was free to be naïve.

_Dark._

_But soon, I'll have to return… to light._


	53. Seeking Solace

**~Seeking Solace~**

"Juliet?"

She turned over, propped herself up on her elbow. "Yeah?"

"Ah, Juliet. You're awake. I didn't disturb you, did I?"

_Yeah, you kinda did. _"No, not at all."

"Oh, well, I was wondering if I could… ah, let me rephrase that. Even though I know that thunder is a –"

"Save me the nerd rant, Arty, and come here."

Artemis tucked himself under the covers with her. "Er… thanks, Juliet."

"Yeah, sure."

And, years later, she would seek out the memory. Smile from it. He hadn't done that for a while now, though. He was too old for it.

Juliet knew that he needed nothing more in his chaotic life.


	54. Break Away

**~Break Away~**

Juliet tugged on her brother's sleeve. "Dom? Dom, where are you going?"

"My client's manor."

"Client?" She didn't know what the word meant, only that this manor wasn't here – home. With her.

"Don't worry," he said soothingly, ruffling her hair. "I'll be back soon."

"Really?"

"Yes, of course." With that, he pulled away from her, gently untangling her fingers from his pants leg. She pouted right back up at him, but smiled almost immediately after.

"Okay then. Bye, Dom!"

"Bye," he replied.

That was the last she saw of him for the next decade or so.

_**I'm writing a lot about Juliet lately, mm? **_


	55. Heaven

**~Heaven~**

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"Is there a heaven?"

Coral Short fumbled with the china plate between her fingers. She set it down gingerly and paused, wiping off her hands on a towel beside the sink. "Not exactly, Holly, but there _is_ the aboveground world. It's very beautiful. "

"Aboveground?"

"Well, we're underground right now," Coral said hesitantly. "Fairies used to live aboveground, but they had to come down here after a while."

"Why did they leave if it was so nice?"

"Ah… it's a long story. You're still young."

"Can I go aboveground when I grow up?" Holly asked, setting her crayon down on the table and looking up into her mother's eyes.

Coral smiled. "Yes, of course."


	56. Innocence

**~Innocence~**

"Mother, your proposal – your _insistence _that I wear casual clothing is ridiculous. For lack of a better term, it is _stupid. _Why should I socially downgrade myself to make others more comfortable in my presence? Perhaps you haven't noticed, but I rather like being –"

"Arty-miss, what does 'stupid' mean?" Beckett asked bluntly, pulling his thumb out from its previous position in his mouth.

Angeline pursed her lips and threw a heated glare at her son. "That is a very, very bad word, Beckett. Don't ever use it."

"Why did Arty-miss say it if it was a bad word?" Myles said, eyes wide and blinking.

"That's exactly right. He shouldn't've said it. Artemis will receive proper punishment for his actions." Angeline scooped up her oversized shopping bag from its place next to her chair, stood up, and dragged her eldest son from the room by the ear.

"What's she going to do?" Myles whispered secretively to Beckett.

"ARTEMIS FOWL, YOU ARE GOING TO GET INTO THIS T-SHIRT RIGHT NOW OR SO HELP ME, I WILL –"

Beckett shrugged. "I dunno."

_**Just something nice for you guys. You're all so good to me ^^**_

_**OH-OH-OH. AND GUESS WHAT THE WORD COUNT IS!**_

_**THAT'S RIGHT.**_

_**IT'S OVER 9,000!**_


	57. Breathe Again

**~Breathe Again~**

_In, out. _Her eyes narrowed as they swept across the length of the track. She could feel sweat trickling its way down her neck from the heat that came with midday, but she didn't move to wipe it off on the back of her hand.

"Mark."

She twitched.

"Set."

She tensed.

"Go."

She was off, running in great strides.

The wind slapped her face. The sun beat down. Her ponytail streamed out behind her, loose strands slipping out to obscure her vision, but she daren't brush the locks away.

And, as she rounded the final bend, perspiration accumulating in her palms from having her fists clenched so tightly, breath falling short, she grinned because she knew that she'd done well. She knew that they'd have to keep her.

"Five thirty-eight," Root announced, stopping the timer. "Not bad, Short."

She walked off the field, bottle in hand, and drank in the filtered air of Haven's streets. It'd never seemed sweeter.

_One step closer to heaven, mom. _She breathed again, hand slipping into her pocket to finger a worn photo.


	58. Memory

**~Memory~**

Root rolled his eyes. "Thirty seconds. Go."

"Well, Arty, I—"

"Don't call me—"

"Does it _matter_? I'll never see you again after this. So what if I call you Arty one last time?"

"It is a serious blow to my—"

"That was a rhetorical question!"

"Well—"

"Whatever! Just shut up!" Holly seethed.

"Ten seconds," the commander reminded them.

"Alright, Mud Boy. You're not a bad person no matter how much you give off that vibe, so just… treat your mother right and stay out of trouble, okay? Remember that. Remember that for me."

"Even after they—"

Root chose then to snatch Artemis up by the wrist and drag him out of the room to where the mind-wiping equipment had been set up, calling out, "Time's up!"

Holly watched the two go, a knot twisting in her stomach. "Yeah, Arty. Even after they wipe your mind."


	59. Insanity

**~Insanity~**

Orion was born in Artemis' mind.

Orion lived in Artemis' mind.

Orion stayed in Artemis' mind.

There was nothing he could do about his predicament, after all. He didn't choose to be there and he couldn't choose to leave. He could only sit and watch and observe and listen and pine away, unable to exert any control over anything. It was rather drab. It was rather boring.

He entertained himself in any way that he could – trying to pick out nonexistent patterns on the blank walls around him, trying to play jacks though he lacked both a partner and the jacks themselves.

He was lonesome. He was sad.

And, like an untended plant, he grew up wrong. He grew up to be unstable. He grew up to be erratic.

They called it insanity.

He didn't know of anything else.


	60. Misfortune

_**(I'm going down a list of prompts now. If I stop for a while, it's probably because the one I'm working on is giving me a hard time. That's why this took so long. Haha. I haven't updated in a week ^^)**_

_**This started out along the lines of, "It was just Holly's luck that she had been kidnapped by Artemis," but it ended up bad no matter how hard I tried. So I kinda rage-quitted and started over. **_**Fowl Star 57**_**, this is for you. I recall you asked for some more Opal? ^^**_

**~Misfortune~**

It was just Opal's luck that she was born a girl.

There was absolutely nothing she could do about it. Her inevitable fate had been sealed the moment she had been conceived. It wasn't her mother's fault that she was female. It wasn't her father's fault, either.

It wasn't anyone's fault. She had no one to blame.

"There are some things you just can't control," her mother would say. "You just have to accept it, Opal, and be a good little girl. Promise me that."

Opal would smile up at her mother and say, "Okay." She'd show those boys. (Maybe that wasn't quite being a good little girl, but that didn't matter to her.)

She strived to top the others in her class. She strived to be better than them all. And, all throughout, she told herself that she was fine with being a girl.

Yet it was Foaly's name that was called during the awards ceremony. It was Foaly who stepped up to claim his prize.

As Opal watched, she wished nothing more than to be a boy.

_**Okay, so it's not my best. Let's admit it. I'm worsening. **_


	61. Smile

**~Smile~**

"Smile, Arty. I'm not going to take a picture of your grimacing face."

"I can't smile upon command. I have to have a reason to," Artemis said petulantly.

"Smile because I'm trying to create worthwhile memories."

Artemis grimaced.

"Don't tell me that you don't know how to smile."

"Well—"


	62. Silence

**~Silence~**

Butler did a quick head count – two, four, five; six if he counted himself – only to realize someone was missing. He didn't even need to think.

_Juliet._

"Where's Juliet?" Butler asked over the din of smoldering wood and resounding aftershocks. There was a pause after his words before the entire left wing of Fowl Manor proceeded to combust. _Artemis' laboratory. I _knew _that we shouldn't've let him have cesium in there. _

"She told us to go on," Beckett mumbled. "It was all dark and we couldn't see, so we thought she was in front of us. And then we got out and then… and then…"

"She wasn't there anymore," Myles offered pitifully.

Butler scanned the wreckage before him. A wall caved before his eyes and collapsed into itself, but the fire itself raged almost inaudibly.

Amidst the soft crackling and crumbling, Butler decided it was the loudest silence he had ever heard.


	63. Questioning

**~Questioning~**

"Do you believe yourself to be guilty of this verdict?"

"Butler, this is hardly a crime –"

"Answer the question, please."

"I have the right to remain silent," Artemis said indignantly, straightening his collar self-consciously.

"We're in Ireland, Artemis."

Artemis scowled.

"So, tell me – do you love Captain Holly Short?"


	64. Rainbow

**~Rainbow~**

"What's your favorite color?"

"I don't have one," Root said bluntly.

Vinyaya rolled over, propping herself up on her elbow in the sweet Irish grass. "Why not?"

"Why should I?"

"It was just a question, Julius. You could do well to answer me this."

There was silence, during which Julius scowled up at the sky and Raine stared at him expectantly.

"Green. Happy?" he asked.

"Yeah."

Julius huffed.

"… Well?"

"What?"

"Ask me what mine is."

"Your favorite color?"

"No, Julius, ask me if I've finished the paperwork that you assigned me two days ago."

"Oh, that. I really need it done by tomorrow, actually," Root mused. "Have you?"

Vinyaya shoved him. "You're so thick."

_**Pointless drabble is pointless.**_


	65. Can You Hear Me?

_**It's been a while.**_

**~Can You Hear Me?~**

Artemis would die soon. (_Four words.)_

His doctors wouldn't admit to it. They didn't need to. Everyone knew. (_Twelve words.)_

The way the coughs and hacks dragged on long into the night, the way he'd smile so weakly, the way he napped away hour after hour told them. (_Twenty-eight words.)_

She'd sit on the pale green chair beside his sickbed, tracing the wrinkles of his bedspread with her eyes. It almost hurt to look at the person between the sheets, to be honest. Every now and then, Artemis would lurch up, gasping raggedly, and turn and chug down some water (_The trains cannot function in such inclement weather; we are sorry for the inconvenience), _throat rough as sandpaper_. (Sixty-eight words.)_

Artemis would die soon; Holly knew and understood. (_Eight words.)_

The day he did, she was still surprised. (_Eight words.)_

Holly petted his oily hair, stringy from lack of washing, and hummed low in her throat soothingly. He wasn't there to receive her comfort; the act was more for her own sake. (_Thirty-two words.)_

"Can you hear me?" (_Four words.)_

She hummed and rocked. (_Four words.)_

"I love you," she said. (_Five.)_

_**Not fantastic-elastic, but here's something for the few readers I have.**_


	66. Hold My Hand

**~Hold My Hand~**

"Oh, hey, I was thinking that we could go to the movies tomorrow. I saw a great trailer the other day."

"Cool," Artemis says, licking his lips at the strange feeling the word leaves behind. He doesn't even ask what movie it is. _Until I find out, I can pretend._

_I'll pretend it's a romance._

_I'll pretend that Trouble doesn't exist and that it's just me and her and the movie and happiness and maybe even some hand-holding. _

Hand-holding used to perplex him. The notion of clasping another's appendage in his just for the purpose of telling the world that they were together seemed… pointless.

He hoped that Holly and Trouble didn't hold hands. Holly was his even if, really, she wasn't. Holly was his because he bloody well said so.

_**This is an excerpt from my songfic, Romeo + Juliette. Full version here: http:/www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/s/7766524/1/AF_and_Co_SHINeefied**_


	67. Tomorrow

_**Excuse my unreasonably long hiatus.**_

**~Tomorrow~**

"Arty-miss?"

"Arty, wake up."

"I'm awake," Artemis informed his brothers, not pausing from his typing.

"Then why didn't you say so?" Myles whined. "We're bored."

"Give us something to do," Beckett pleaded.

"Entertain yourselves."

"But we can't. And Myles is so boring."

"You just can't think at my level, simple-toon," Myles sniffed.

Artemis rubbed his temples. "Just… go outside. Run. Play." He didn't know what to tell them. It wasn't as if he had had spare time while growing up, and he needed to finish formatting five more pages.s

"Can you take us to the zoo?"

"Can you take us to the science museum?"

"Can you take us to eat ice cream?"

"Can you –"

Artemis sighed. "Tomorrow."


	68. Advertisement

**~Advertisement~**

_Want someone to take over your shift for a few hours? Need a brain to help with your math homework? Artificial intelligence is impressive, but just that – artificial. The original, creative thought process of a sentient being cannot be imitated, so we don't try. Instead, we offer you a living, breathing human – yours for forty-eight doubloons a day. Don't worry. We've trained him. Call 1-800-BUY-ARTY to order._

"This is ridiculous," Foaly declared, huffing as he presented the poster to Holly. "I doubt anyone would want the Mud Boy doing their work for them, anyway. They must know that his brains are nothing compared to mine."

"Would you like to offer your services, then?" Holly asked, smirking.

"No. It's just… how did you convince him to do this, anyway?"

"He lost a bet."


	69. Meat

**~Meat~**

Artemis had never found fault in consuming meat. He'd been doing so ever since his teeth first developed.

Holly believed that all life was sacred and could not be disposed of for one's own selfish purposes. She was a vegetarian.

"It's okay if you like it, though," Holly said flippantly, noticing Artemis' reluctance to eat his steak.

Artemis nodded stiffly in response, stalling by carefully wiping his already clean fork and knife on his impractically lacy napkin. He set them down on the table again and adjusted the silverware until they were all parallel to each other.

That night, Artemis Fowl became a vegetarian as well.


	70. Waiting

**~Waiting~**

"I'll see you in a few days, then," she says casually. To her, the words are just that – words. Of no importance.

"Yeah, sure." They matter to him, though.

Those words mean that he'll have to wait a while to see her again. Wait for her.

He can. He will.

Days pass; he waits. _Patience._

_**Again, taken from Romeo + Juliette. It's a bit different from what's in the fic, though, because I've been editing it and this is part of the new version. Link: http:/www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/s/7766524/1/AF_and_Co_SHINeefied**_


	71. Drawing

**~Drawing~**

Orion found himself a pastime. He'd realized, with some fascination, that he could make misshapen marks on the white floor inside Artemis' mind using the heels of his loafers. He scratched out "Orion + Holly" and proceeded to draw a heart around it. When he stood back to observe, he was shocked to discover that the left side was much larger than the right. The heart was awkward and warped.

After careful thought, Orion deduced that his problem could be fixed. He would simply redraw the left side so that it mirrored the right, and then color the area around the heart black to mask his original mistake.

Orion set to work, removing one shoe and gripping it in both hands to increase his control and precision. Several tense seconds later, he examined his handiwork. The new left side was smaller than the right.

Ten minutes later, Orion realized that making his heart any smaller would ruin either the "O" in Orion or the "y" in Holly.

This was not the reality he wanted.

The imperfections maddened him for some reason. His love for Holly was not being accurately portrayed. Orion shrugged off his suit jacket and spat on the black marks on the floor. He scrubbed away with the expensive material of his jacket, conjuring wads of spit and rubbing the words away.

They faded eventually and the room was white once more.


	72. Found

**~Found~**

Myles was so excited, so enthusiastic. "There are some organ-ises that reproduce by doubling their DNA?" he asked, just for confirmation.

"Yes, Myles. It's called 'budding,'" Artemis explained, smiling slightly. Myles' fascination brought on memories of Artemis' own experiments as a child, during a time where science was fun, not stressful.

"Why can't people do that?"

"Humans are a little too complicated for that."

Myles tilted his head to the side, staring intently at the fresh growth of coral before him as though he'd found something. "That's 'mazing."

Artemis had found something.


	73. Green

**~Green~**

"Now write a poem about the word you picked from the bin," Artemis' English teacher said, a maddeningly fake smile on her face.

Artemis stared at his slip. _Green._

Holly liked green. Holly's LEP suit was green. Holly's wallpaper was green. He'd seen it once while he was video chatting with her.

Green was the color of grass. Green was the color of leaves. Green was the color of boogers. (Beckett and Myles were surely getting to his head.)

Butler had a green tie. He seldom wore it. A pity, too, because Holly liked –

Green. What was green? Artemis tapped his pencil. No more Holly. No more thoughts of Holly, he told himself.

Green paint was green. Holly must have used green paint to paint her walls green.

What was he thinking? _Green paint was green. _Gods. He was insane. He'd gone over the edge. He was at his wit's end. This was it. The day of the apocalypse, the day that Artemis lost his mind.

He cupped his chin with one hand, exasperated, and made a little huffing noise – his version of a sigh.

"Why is your paper blank, Artemis?"

Artemis looked up, startled. His teacher stood to his left, eyebrows drawn together in a frown. "Um," Artemis said.

_Um. _Gods. Insane. Yes, this was it. This was the end. This was how they were all going down.

_**I'm back. Who missed me?**_

_**This was pretty fun to write, actually. I've been trying to conquer writer's block for a while now. I don't really think it's gone, but… here you go. **_


End file.
